Armenia, France to sign strategic partnership deal during Macron visit

(Horizon Media / YEREVAN) – Armenia and France are expected to elevate their bilateral relationship with the signing of a long-anticipated strategic partnership agreement during French President Emmanuel Macron’s upcoming state visit to Yerevan in early May.

Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan confirmed that the document, currently under discussion for an extended period, will serve as a cornerstone of deepened cooperation between the two countries. He noted that the visit’s agenda will be extensive, with multiple additional agreements also expected to be concluded across a range of sectors.

Macron is scheduled to arrive in Armenia on May 4 to participate in the European Political Community summit to be held in Yerevan. Official state visit engagements are expected to follow on May 5, including high-level meetings with Armenian leadership and the formalization of bilateral accords.

The anticipated partnership agreement is expected to institutionalize and expand cooperation in key areas such as defence, security, economic development, infrastructure, and cultural exchange. In recent years, France has emerged as one of Armenia’s principal European partners, particularly in defence cooperation and political support amid regional security challenges.

Paris has taken an increasingly active role in backing Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, including through diplomatic engagement within European structures and growing military-technical cooperation, although it has fallen short of meaningfully addressing the many challenges still being faced by Azerbaijan’s genocidal aggression against Artsakh in 2023.

Macron last visited Armenia in October 2018 to attend the Francophonie summit in Yerevan. The planned visit and the expected signing of a strategic partnership agreement come amid shifting geopolitical dynamics in the South Caucasus, as Armenia seeks to diversify its foreign partnerships and strengthen ties with European actors.